Solve the Mystery

A young, Quaker woman of unusual independence and wealth has been found dead in the River Lee. It was thought that she drowned, but an autopsy six weeks after her death suggests foul play. Four men were accused of her murder. The foremost was the son of earl of Hertford, Spencer Cowper, and three others were said to be his accomplices. During the trial, a seductive set of rumors were unleashed: a devastated woman driven by melancholy to her own death, a forbidden love affair, a political back-stabbing, and revenge driven by a lust for power ending in murder. While Spencer and his accomplices were acquitted in 1699, questions surrounding the trial remain unanswered.

Truth and Intrigue are at war. You have chosen to intervene. You must have your most finely attuned powers of detection and critical thinking at hand to place judgment on the facts of this case.

The certain facts of the case are few:

Spencer Cowper and Sarah Walker were last people to see her alive.

Sarah Stout’s body was exhumed and autopsied 6 weeks after her death.

Spencer Cowper, John Marson, Ellis Stevens, and William Rogers were tried for her murder and acquitted.

As you enter the town of Hertford, use the Map to designate your location. This will call forth notable persons from the case, and you will have the opportunity to hear his or her account and to question him or her.

As a witness to these testimonies and the surrounding evidence, you can use the Notebook to record key observations and review notable aspects of the case.

Place your Verdict when you are satisfied that your questions have been answered.

Be forewarned: the facts of the case are not always apparent; motives may not be as they seem; and media are both revealing and concealing.